Loadshedding extended to Sunday, 6 June

Following five days of loadshedding, Eskom has announced that power cuts will be extended through the weekend.

At the same time, the power utility announced that power cuts would be suspended temporarily on Friday for a virtual sitting of Parliament to take place.

Eskom will suspend power cuts between 12pm and 5pm on Friday, 4 June so that Parliament can meet regarding a series of Appropriation Bills.

“Passing these Bills is essential to keeping government operating, as without the relevant appropriations there will be no funding for key state functions, such as hospitals, law enforcement and other essential services,” the company said in a statement.

It said that the suspension was possible due to large industrial power consumers agreeing to reduce their power usage during this time slot.

However, this suspension will also require Eskom to extend rolling blackouts through the weekend.

As a result, Stage 2 loadshedding will continue from 5pm on Friday until 10pm on Sunday, 6 June.

You can see the full Eskom statement below:

#PowerAlert1

In order to allow parliament to pass the Appropriation Bill, Stage 2 loadshedding will be suspended from 12:00 to 17:00 today@News24 @SABCNews @NewzroomAfrika @eNCA @IOL @ewnupdates @SundayTimesZA @SowetanLIVE @dailysunsa pic.twitter.com/d4naqeHG7B

— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) June 4, 2021

Meanwhile, the City of Cape Town has been switching between Stage 1 and Stage 2 loadshedding for City-supplied customers.

The municipality posts updates regarding its schedule on its social feeds.

Feature image: Casey Horner/Unsplash

Read more: Apps and tools to help you keep track of your loadshedding schedule and stages